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User blog:Ultimate Mega Gamer/UMG's List of Consumed Media 2018 (+ December 2017)
Introduction! Since around mid-January, I've been keeping track of every piece of media I've consumed. Be it TV, film or video game. But recently, I've been looking for a way to give this list meaning & I figured, why not make some tiny little reviews of them? This way I can inform people of things I see that I've found interesting, good, bad & everything in between. This list will include every movie, television season & video game that I've played throughout 2018 (As well as December of 2017 because I saw a lot of things in that month that I didn't want to leave out.) As of creating this blog, not everything I've watched this year will be filled in & I'm not even 100% sure that I'll fill in everything but I hope to fill in as much as I can as the days go by. Movies! Creep - 2014, Directed by Patrick Brice Creep was actually a bit of a weird outing for me because of all the genres in the world, the one genre I never watch is horror. So the idea of watching Creep was intimidating to me in itself. Thankfully, I had a really enjoyable time with this one. It's a solid mix of intrigue, suspense, scares & more than it's share of WTF moments. I watched this with a few good friends of mine & none of us could figure out just what to think when this guy is just standing there in a furry wolf mask slowing growing a fucking boner. It was one of the most WTF moments I think I've ever seen in a movie. It was fucking bizarre. But this was a surprisingly good movie. Despite how strange it gets it can be just as heart racing & tense. Those same friends watched the sequel after I had gone to bed & told me the next day that it was a steaming pile of shit but regardless of that I'd like to eventually watch Creep 2. I'm interested to see how a sequel to this one would play out. Her - 2013, Directed by Spike Jonze Man, I wish I could watch more stuff like Her. I also wish I could date an AI with the voice of Scarlett Johansson but only one of those is going to happen. Now, I won't lie, I was pretty sleepy while I was watching this one so a lot of it is fuzzy. I'm gonna have to go back & rewatch it soon so that I can remember exactly what's happened. But from what I do remember, Her is really fun & yet strangely deep & real. Watching the relationship between the two main characters, at first, was really strange & off-putting but before long it got a reaction out of me that I would never have saw coming at the beginning. I was invested in this relationship & every time it stumbled I was hoping for it to get back to the right place. And that ending, wow. Not where I expected a movie like this to end. It was heartbreaking yet still in its own strange way believable. I can see why at its release this movie gained the attention it did. It's a modern masterpiece. Hulk - 2003, Directed by Ang Lee Question, how do you make the Incredible Hulk, one of comics greatest, strongest & most well-known characters, boring? Well, it's simple really, you just take 137 million dollars & waste it making this nightmarish pile of trash. No, but seriously, how do you even make a movie about Hulk this boring? I don't get it. The characters are boring, the plot isn't very interesting & the Hulk scenes are scarce which I feel like is a death sentence for the movie from the very beginning. There are very few saving graces in this film but they are there. Sam Elliott's performance as General Ross was somewhat enjoyable, Nick Nolte as David Banner got pretty enjoyable towards the end & the final action scene was fun to watch to an extent. But every other aspect of the movie fails. But the movie has one thing that is literally one of the worst things I've ever seen in a film: the editing effects & transitions. Holy fucking shit. If you've seen or read anything about this movie then you should know how atrocious the editing is. It tries to replicate the look of a drawn comic book & while it very vaguely manages to achieve this goal, more often then not it comes off more as a distraction than anything else. I kind of really wish I had more to say about this. It's a Hulk movie for crying out loud but it's so aggressively boring that there's really nothing of note baring a few cool shots, one or two cool scenes & a couple of minor noteworthy performances. Moana - 2016, Directed by Ron Clements & John Musker Man, Moana... This is just classic style Disney. This is Frozen, Tangled style Disney & it's just incredible. I loved this movie. It's got all the staples of classic big name Disney movies like Lion King, Beauty & the Beast & Mulan. Fantastic animation, engaging characters & a whole lot of heart. Actually, really quickly, on the point of the animation. For a CG animated Disney film that's not trying to really go for realism, the animation of the water is spectacular. I couldn't stop looking at it & thinking "That looks so unbelievably good." As I said, this movie is classic Disney musical stuff. But that said, it's musical numbers were a bit lackluster to me. There are only three memorable songs for me. You're Welcome, Shiny & How Far I'll Go. Now, How far I'll go is good in its own right but my problem with it is that they keep shoving in renditions of it & it's even jammed into other songs. So it kind of gets drilled into your head. But it's the best song in the movie so it's not the worst thing in the world. But otherwise, I fucking love this movie. It's quintessential Disney. Pixels - 2015, Directed by Chris Columbus So, I've never considered myself the best critic. I have a tendency to enjoy things that are usually considered terrible. Now, maybe this just means my taste differs from most people or I just have terrible opinions but, are you ready for this? I enjoyed Pixels... I thought it was good. Not great, not fantastic. But good. Adam Sandler was, for the most part, enjoyable, Kevin Smith was fine despite rolling with some of his usual moronic shtick & the action pieces & some of the video game fan-service was really pretty damn great. But that's kind of it. The love plot between Sandler & Generic-Adam-Sandler-Love-Interest-Character Number 24 was pretty terrible & predictable & I've heard a lot of people saying that Peter Dickledge was the best part of the movie but his character absolutely annoyed the ever-loving shit out of me. Probably because he's just another Adam Sandler bully character. I really don't get what saw in his character. But the same could be said for the movie. I don't get the hate. Yes, it's not the best thing ever. Yes, a whole lot of it is predictable Adam Sandler garbage but I still had my share of fun with this one. Shrek the Third - 2007, Directed by Chris Miller (Rewatch) So... This is a weird one. I kind of rewatched it because of my views. I've seen this movie a shitload of times but I haven't seen it in a very long time. So I was talking with a friend, unironically mind you, about what we think is the order of the Shrek films from best to worse. Mine was Shrek 2 > Shrek the Third > Shrek > Shrek Forever After. My friend impatiently challenged me. "What are you talking about? Shrek 1 is miles ahead of Shrek the Third." I rewatched it that night & you know what? He was fucking right. This movie is just not good. Better than Shrek Forever After, which admittedly isn't hard to do because that movie was fucking atrocious. I think the reason that this is where the Shrek movies started to decline in quality is that this is where Shrek lost its edge. The reasons the first two Shrek movies worked is because it took something that was well known & very established, children's fairy tales & made them kind of like, raunchy & not quite adult per se but they weren't the same as the characters Disney tried to sell you. The first two turned characters like the Gingerbread Man, Pinocchio & the Big Bad Wolf into what essentially were its own form of satire of the Disney versions & it was really fun to watch cause it was fun to think about what character they were going to poke at next. But that's not what these movies were. Mind you this movie also lost the really good writing & jokes of the first two Shrek movies & when you lose the two things that made you stand out from the crowd, you're just another kids film. And that's a perfect description of what this movie is. It's just another kids film. Spider-Man - 2002, Directed by Sam Rami (Rewatch) Spider-Man is the very definition of what a good superhero movie looked like in the early 2000s. It's through & through a good movie. Though I will admit, it hasn't aged that ''well. There are a few early 2000s movie tropes that show & make the movie a little unbearable. For example, the awkward scenes between Peter & Mary Jane that came packaged with the boy-likes-girl-who-is-out-of-his-league plot weren't enjoyable to me, they were just cringy & unbearable to watch but this is the only one of the three Spider-Man movies where that is the case. Honestly, that's my only real complaint with this movie & to an extent this trilogy overall. I just never became invested in Peter & Mary Jane's relationship. But there are more than enough good things in this movie to make me not worry about it. Tobey Maguire, James Franco & especially Willem Dafoe all play their parts really well & are enjoyable throughout & the action scenes are good. It reaks of the early 2000s but it holds up as a really great superhero movie. Spider-Man 2 - 2004, Directed by Sam Rami (Rewatch) God damn. The pièce de résistance of Spider-Man movies. This movie is awesome. Doc Oct is fantastic, the story is fantastic, Maguire, Franco & Molina are fantastic, Mary Jane still sucks... I joke, but this movie has the best plot, best acting & best action of the three Spider-Man movies. The train scene is amazing. One thing I love about this film is the struggle between Spider-Man & Peter Parker. Peter wants to do well, he wants everything to go right for him, he wants to keep his job, he wants to get the girl but Spider-Man keeps getting in the way. And he knows he could give it up but then there's no one to keep the city safe. It's not a new dilemma but it's handled here to an effect that no Spider-Man movie since has, except maybe Homecoming. But to wrap up (Because for some reason I don't have nearly as much as I'd like to to say about these movies...) This is perhaps the best Spider-Man movie that there has been... Except maybe Spider-Man: Homecoming. I'll have to rewatch that movie to make up my mind. Spider-Man 3 - 2007, Directed by Sam Rami (Rewatch) So, when I went into this movie I thought the general consensus was that this movie was god awful, unwatchable & just all around terrible. Turns out my thoughts were a little exaggerated but even still, I like this movie. I think it's perfectly fine. I honestly don't even think it's the worst Spider-Man movie. In my opinion, it's about on par as the first. But I see the issues that people have. Venom is a pointless inclusion, emo Peter Parker is literally the worst thing ever, Mary Jane is still the worst part of these films & yeah, the film has way too much on its plate. Between setting up Sandman & Venom & continuing the relationships between Mary Jane, Harry & Peter, this film just had too much to do & too little time to do it. But despite that, when it did shit right, it did it really fucking well, Franco & Maguire once again put on a great performance, the action scenes, especially the final action scene, were great. They don't rival the Train scene at all but they're still great. It's not the perfect end to the trilogy but it's still perfectly fine. Also, can I just say that I love Rosemary Harris as Aunt May, she is incredible throughout all three of these movies? The Meyerowitz Stories (New & Selected) - 2017, Noah Baumbach Hey guys, if I told you that I had found a movie starring Adam Sandler where he gives a really, really solid performance of an actually likable character with an enjoyable story, would you believe me? Cause I'm not sure that I would. But nonetheless, that's what The Meyerowitz Stories is. I love it when I see movies like this, grounded & focusing on real people, not larger than life characters. Cause these are the types of films I want to make, but that's a story for another day. The movie follows a retired sculpture father played by Dustin Hoffman & his two sons played by Sandler & Ben Stiller. It's fucking crazy to have those three names in this movie. Cause this isn't the kind of movie I'd ever see them being in. But they all turn in really solid performances. Now, as we know, Sandler's recent movie outings really seem to fall flat but this is real proof that he is a good actor. He really is. If you don't believe me then go watch the movie. I implore you. It's a good look at a father's relationship with his sons as he ages & goes through his health scares that aging brings. It's really quite impressive. The Wild Thornberrys Movie - 2002, Directed by Cathy Malkasian & Jeff McGrath (Rewatch) Man, you know those movies that you watch when you're really young & have fond memories of. Like, '''those' movies. Well, The Wild Thornberrys Movie is one of those movies for me. I watched it countless times as a child & even then I think I had a mild indifference to it. Rewatching it today. I feel more or less unchanged. The difference now is that now I have this thing called taste & the ability to critique things. Anyhow, I'm pretty sure that I've never seen an episode of The Wild Thornberrys but if this movie is any indication of what the show is like then I'd never turn down the opportunity to see an episode. But I can't really say that I have strong feelings about the movie either way. Don't mistake me, this is a really solid animated movie but there's better stuff out there but at the same time there's most certainly worse movies. But this is a good movie with a great message & compelling characters. Even if this is only a sample of all of them. I feel like everyone is a lot more fleshed out in the show than they appear to be in this movie. But this movie did come out in the middle of the shows run so it's more likely that this movies target audience already knew these characters. But the message of being able to do extraordinary things despite being an ordinary person is great. The voice acting is great. But the animation isn't the best I've ever seen. The animation style is comparable to Big Mouth which I think looks disgusting & awful but it's to a lesser extent in this movie than it is in Big Mouth. Wonder Woman - 2017, Directed by Patty Jenkins Man, I don't know. I'm not the biggest Wonder Woman fan & I hate every DCEU movie I've seen so far but I tried to go into this one with an open mind but I just didn't think that much of Wonder Woman. Don't get me wrong for a moment. This is the best movie is the DCEU by a fucking mile. But in fairness, that's not a hard feat to achieve. The characters were one of two things, stock & unoriginal or not even fleshed out at all. The three guys who tag along on the adventure, the Scott, the Indian & the other dude (Who I literally don't remember shit about despite watching this movie less than 24 hours ago) were just introduced, given some character traits & then they were just there for the rest of the movie. Diana Prince in this movie was one of the most uninspired characters I've ever seen. She is just a basic heroic fish-out-of-water character spouting the most predictable heroic shit. Another problem I had with this movie was the lack of action. There are 2 major action scenes in total. I'm all for a superhero movie that doesn't focus on its action but if you're going to go for that could you at least not make everything else boring as fuck. But I'll admit, when the action did start up it was really well done if using very noticeable CGI. There are glimmers of a well-done war movie here, the little fleshing out they did do of the characters could have been genuinely troubling & effective if they were dwelled on for more than seven seconds. I thought this movie was just okay. It's not at all better than BvS & Suicide Squad but I think I'd rather rewatch them nine times out of ten because I find them more entertaining than this. Movies I've Seen That I Haven't Written About Yet 51M8YHT2JFL._SY445_.jpg|Atlantis: The Lost Empire MV5BMTg1MTY2MjYzNV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTc4NTMwNDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg|Black Panther 220px-DeathNotePoster.jpg|Death Note (Rewatch) 220px-Guardians_of_the_Galaxy_Vol_2_poster.jpg|Guardians of the Galaxy 2 (Rewatch) I_Love_You,_Man.jpg|I Love You, Man 220px-Identity_Thief_Poster.jpg|Identity Thief Justice-league-dark-poster.jpg|Justice League Dark (Rewatch) MV5BMTUwMzI5ODEwNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjAzNjI2MDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg|Kong: Skull Island MV5BMjQwODQwNTg4OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTk4MTAzMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg|Logan MV5BMTk2MTMwOTk3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMDI5OTYxMDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg|Max Steel Paul_poster.jpg|Paul (Rewatch) 220px-Popstar_Lonely_Island.jpg|Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping 445990-seth-rogen-s-hilarity-for-charity-0-230-0-345-crop.jpg|Seth Rogen's Hilarity for Charity Spider-Man_Homecoming_poster.jpg|Spider-Man: Homecoming (Rewatch) MV5BMTcyNTEyOTY0M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwOTAyNzU3MDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg|The Lego Batman Movie Zombieland-poster.jpg|Zombieland (Rewatch) Television! The Good Place - Seasons 1-2, Created by Michael Schur I don't rightly know what words to use to describe just how clever & funny & intriguing The Good Place is. This show was created by Michael Schur, one of the co-creators of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a show which I consider to be one of the best sitcoms on television at the moment. The characters are all enjoyable & have their own quirks & they're all distinct in they're own way. Which is something I love above all else in a good show, if you can swap any two characters around & everything stays the same & everything feels the same then you've made characters that don't matter in any of the situations they're put in. It's why I love shows like this, Bojack Horseman, Brooklyn Nine-Nine & Gravity Falls. But who gives a shit about good characters if the story is no good? Well, I guess we're lucky that The Good Place has a really intriguing story to keep it afloat. I won't give away the twist that bridges the first & the second season but it was as ambitious as it was surprising & completely changes the game for the second season which was just as good as the first. I can't wait to see how season 3 plays out. Television I've Seen That I Haven't Written About Yet Black_Lightning_Title_Card.png|Black Lightning Devilman_Crybaby_Title_Card.png|Devilman Crybaby Jessica_Jones_Title_Card.png|Jessica Jones (Season 1, Rewatch) Jessica_Jones_Title_Card.png|Jessica Jones (Season 2) My_Next_Guest_Title_Card.png|My Next Guest Need no Introduction With David Lettermen Rick_&_Morty_Title_Card.png|Rick & Morty Stretch_Armstrong_Title_Card.png|Stretch Armstrong & the Flex Fighters The_Defenders_Title_Card.png|The Defenders (Rewatch) The_Punisher_Title_Card.png|The Punisher Voltron_Title_Card.png|Voltron: Legendary Defender Young_Justice_Title_Card.png|Young Justice Video Games Life is Strange - 2015, Developed by Dontnod Entertainment I can give you my thoughts on Life is Strange in three words: HOLY FUCKING SHIT. This game blows me away for all the best & worst reasons. I played this game in early January & I'm writing this bit of text in mid-March. This game has been everywhere I look. It's fucking crazy. The game follows Max Caulfield & Chloe Price as they reconnect for the first time is years. Max suddenly has these time rewinding powers & Chole wants to find out what has happened to a friend of hers, Rachel. Meanwhile, Max foresees that a massive fucking storm is coming to wipe out her home of Arcadia Bay. It's a loving story of friendship, mystery & loss. This game has stuck with me from the moment I played it. Its story is spectacular. The writing, at times, can be really cheesy & sometimes downright bad. But when it's not these characters feel real. But in a game like this, they need to so... Anyway, this game plays like a Telltale game. You make decisions that alter the story in their own way. But with the added twist of Max's time powers, you never have to live with a decision. This, however, takes away from one of the biggest aspects of a Telltale game: Pressure. At first, this was pretty jarring to me & truth be told, I don't think I ever warmed up to it. My mindset was "Why should I worry about picking wrong when I can just go back & pick right?" But to wrap up, this game is really good. It tells an engaging story right up until it's credits & has kept with me for over two months now. Like, I've tried to listen to menu music for this game, but I can't do it. Cause I remember the game & some of the choices I had to make & it becomes too much for me. It sounds stupid & I think it kind of is. But if you're anything like me, this is the effect the game will have on you. THOR.N - 2017, Developed by ADVECT Productions I really don't have a whole lot to say about THOR.N. It's a really short game & that's a little bit of a problem, cause right when it get's interesting, it ends. This game is kind of like games like Cookie Clicker & AdVenture Capitalist. Most of the gameplay is you pushing buttons. But this has an interesting twist. There's not a whole lot of story but what is provided to you is really intriguing. It's some weirdo dystopian future where everybody works in their homes creating the necessary items for living like clothes, water & food. Everybody has this A.I. housemate type thing & if anybody steps a foot out of line, they're hunted down & killed. But it's like I said, right as all this starts to affect you, well, the game ends. It's a little disappointing. But not too disappointing. The game only lasts about 30-40 minutes & as I said, the gameplay is mostly you pushing buttons but the little hints at the outside world are enough to stop you from getting bored. It's not too bad for a sort of, kind of free game. Games I've Played That I Haven't Written About Yet Download3412213.jpg|Driver: San Francisco (Replay) Download2245323.jpg|Grand Theft Auto IV (Replay) 220px-The_Ballad_of_Gay_Tony_cover.jpg|Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony (Replay) 71MlpR0TZtL._SX385_.jpg|Super Mario 3D Land Category:Blog posts